Falcatakely

Falcatakely had a beak that looked like a toucan's, but it was not a close relative of toucans. Its beak shape evolved separately.1

The upper jaw of Falcatakely was made mostly of a large, toothless maxilla bone, with a small premaxilla that held teeth.1

Falcatakely is one of the few Mesozoic birds known to have a deep, long beak. Most early birds had simple, short snouts.1

This bird belonged to a group called Enantiornithes, which were the most common birds during the Cretaceous period.3

The only known fossil of Falcatakely was found in the Maevarano Formation in Madagascar, a site famous for other unusual animals like the giant frog Beelzebufo.3

Falcatakely shows that some ancient birds evolved large beaks before modern birds appeared, challenging old ideas about beak evolution.1